Malaysia’s ‘Allah’ controversy
Is limiting the use of the Arabic word for God a sign of growing intolerance towards minorities?
Malaysian Muslims hold placards during a protest againts the introduction of a Malay language bible that uses the word Allah to translate god, at the national mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 15 April 2011. (EPA/SHAMSHAHRIN SHAMSUDIN)
Should the word ‘Allah’ be exclusive to Muslims? In Malaysia, Islamic authorities recently seized 321 Bibles from a Christian group who’s been using the Arabic word to refer to God. The raid reinforced a Malaysian court ruling last year which concluded that the word should only be used by Muslims. However, beyond who is allowed to use ‘Allah’ when referring to God and who isn’t, many say there is a growing intolerance towards Malaysia’s ethnic and religious minorities. We discuss at 19:30GMT.